The judge came out of the office on the fifth floor of the Hall of Justice, carrying his black robe.

"You got everybody here?" he said.

"Yes sir," said the groom.

"OK," the judge said. "Down the hallway."

Time for a lunch-hour ceremony in courtroom No. 3.

The wedding in Casper would take just a few minutes, but it was years in the making for Jay Stamper and Crystal Hansen. And after coping with a sick baby and a hurricane that drove them across the country, it was a relief.

The couple met five years ago, at a party in Washington state.

"I thought she was cute, she was really cute," Jay said. "My friend Tara was like, don't even think about it."

Maybe he had too much of a past to date a pretty younger girl.

Neither had a perfect life. Crystal already had a baby, a little boy her grandmother now raises. Jay grew up in Mississippi housing projects, then moved around the country with his father's Navy career.

Maybe when they saw each other, they just thought each other was cute.

Maybe they felt a bit of hope for a brighter future together.

A baby is born

They dated a few years and then, last summer, Crystal became pregnant.

Without close ties to her family in Washington, they moved to Pascagoula, Miss., where Jay's mother could help them out.

"Jay told me, 'It's like a tropical paradise, babe," Crystal said.

She rolls her eyes.

The air was muggy, full of mosquitoes. It got so hot she didn't like to leave the house, or get in the car, with her growing belly.

The baby was born in February. They thought about making him a "junior." But Jay never liked his given name, Stanley Eugene, so they decided on Raymond, after Crystal's dad.

The name was the easy part, because they couldn't bring baby Raymond home.

He needed six surgeries, for a birth defect; he was born with his intestines outside his little body.

Crystal stayed with him at the University of South Alabama Children's and Women's Hospital in Mobile, across the state line, while Jay worked seven days a week in construction just to make a living, at $8.50 an hour.

His mother drove him back and forth to the hospital every day so he could see his baby, and his girl.

They celebrated milestones there: Mother's Day, Father's Day, Valentine's Day, Crystal's 24th birthday and Jay's 28th.

With each visit, Jay could only stay so long, then he'd have to go back.

"It was like, am I ever going to get to bring him home, and have a normal life?" Jay says.

Raymond was six months old by the time he was ready to go. He would need a feeding pump, but he'd be home.

Jay and Crystal had been living with Jay's mom in Moss Point, a neighborhood where gangs and gunfire were common.

They moved in with his cousin at a better place, five blocks from the beach where it was quieter, and took their baby there.

"We didn't have much," Jay said, "but what we had, it was ours."

'Gone'

One day in late August, Jay was watching the news.

There was a warning: a hurricane was on the way.

Crystal had never lived through a hurricane. She thought they could wait it out at home.

But he told her, we need to go back to the hospital. Raymond couldn't be off his machines for more than a few hours, and the power was sure to go out.

They watched the destruction on the news from the hospital. Most news focused on New Orleans, but their Gulf city - a shipping port and refinery hub - was devastated.

The day after Hurricane Katrina, the local paper published online. The headline just said, "Gone."

Jay says, "My aunt said it best: We lost more than our things. It tore our family apart."

His relatives scattered, wherever they could find help.

Jay and Crystal didn't know what they could do.

They called Andra Arnold and Neill Berry, friends from when they lived in Washington. Andra was in school at Casper College, and Neill worked at a hydraulics company here.

Everything happened so fast.

Andra said they could stay awhile in an apartment Neill was renting. She talked to the United Way, the Red Cross, the McMurry Foundation, and Casper stepped up.

The organizations gave plane tickets for the young family to get here, and later a deposit and first month's rent on an apartment, behind the Albertson's on CY. Neill's boss hired Jay on, at a higher wage than he'd been making in Mississippi.

They got some money from FEMA, and more disaster assistance is coming.

An anonymous person gave a beat-up minivan. They worried the brakes were worn out, but a little brake fluid did the trick.

Jay, Crystal and Raymond came to Casper on a Wednesday night.

Monday morning, Jay went to work, and the family started over.

New start

Every morning Jay gets up early for work. He plays with Raymond while he waits for his ride.

He gets to Advanced Hydraulic & Machine about 7:30, drinks his coffee and smokes a cigarette, pulls on his coveralls and starts working at 8.

PJ Rose, an owner of the company, said they weren't hiring when Neill Berry said he had a friend who could use a job. But, "We were caught up in the human tragedy of Katrina."

They made room for Jay, and helped train him.

"He seems genuinely grateful for the opportunity we've given him," Rose says. "But we haven't given him a damn thing."

Jay's worked for it, he explained.

One day Jay called home and asked Crystal, "Do you want to sit, or stand?"

She was confused, but said, "Stand."

He called back later to say he had two Motley Crue tickets. It was their first date night out together since the baby was born.

Crystal stays home with Raymond during the day. After they moved to Casper, she took him to Dr. Thomas Radosevich.

The doctor helped get Raymond off the feeding tube. Now Raymond drinks formula and eats Gerber like a regular baby. His favorite treats are french fries and Cheetos, which he likes to throw from his high chair.

Crystal does the housework and has dinner ready when Jay comes home. On a Friday they'll get Burger King and rent a movie. Saturday, they'll go to the mall and walk around.

Jay always stops at Hot Topic to buy funny outfits for Raymond. Regular baby clothes are too pastel. He bought a Guns 'n' Roses outfit, and one with baby Stewie from "Family Guy."

Another day, he called Crystal again.

"We're going to get married," he said. "You've got four weeks."

Wedding day

They had talked about getting married someday, but couldn't make plans while their son was sick.

Plus, they didn't have much money.

After they moved to Casper, Jay kept talking about it. The time felt right, even though he felt they were essentially married already.

"I was like, yeah right, we're not ever going to get married," Crystal said.

Jay talked to PJ, who helped him find a judge and gave him a day off work.

Crystal went to Sears and found a white summer dress on sale. She bought some new white sandals, and some tiny rhinestone flowers to decorate her long hair.

Jay bought new black pants and black shoes, a black shirt and two ties. He wasn't sure he knew how to tie one properly, so just in case he bought a backup with a hidden loop that slips under his shirt collar.

For Raymond, they bought little black velcro dress shoes, a white Western shirt with snaps, a vest and a snap-on tie.

There are still last minute details to work out as they get ready Wednesday morning.

"So, am I going to wear these pants?" Jay asks.

"I don't care, whatever you feel comfortable in, babe," Crystal says.

But she won't let him wear the black shirt.

"He looks like he's going to a funeral."

"In a way, I am," he says.

He wears green, instead.

Crystal gives Raymond a bath and snuggles him in his terrycloth robe. She takes a shower, and dries her long hair. Two of her girlfriends come over to help with her makeup.

Jay calls his mom in Mississippi while Crystal dresses Raymond in his little outfit.

"What are you doing Mom? Yeah, I'm getting ready right now to get married. No, not really nervous. Just want to get it over with. She's been hounding me. I wish you could be here. I love you. I'll let you go. All right. I love you too. Bye."

Jay tells Raymond, "Mama says she loves you."

The phone rings, and it's Crystal's dad. An operator patches him through when she accepts the call.

She sniffles as she talks quietly to him in the kitchen.

"Oh yeah, he looks handsome," she says. "I love you, too."

Jay puts his clothes on. He waits until the last minute to put on his stiff new shoes.

He looks down as he ties them, and says to himself, "I wish I didn't have these tattoos on my hands."

Today's a day for a fresh start.

They take the van to the courthouse, and ride the elevator to the fifth floor.

A lady waiting in the lobby says, "Is a wedding going on here? God bless you. God bless you forever. You're a beautiful bride."

Crystal smiles, and the lady says, "I pray that God will bless you forever. You brighten up my day."

The judge comes out of his office with his black robe over his arm, and says, "You got everybody here?"

"Yes sir," Jay says.

He's got Raymond, Crystal, their friends, and three of his coworkers who came to support them.

They follow the judge to courtroom No. 3 and stand, facing each other, in front of him.

Jay takes Crystal's hands in his. He winks at her, and whispers, "I love you."

They repeat after the judge: For better and for worse …

Reach Barbara Nordby at (307) 266-0633 or at barbara.nordby@casperstartribune.net.